The De’Longhi Eletta Explore is a fully automatic coffee machine designed for more than traditional espresso drinks. Its main advantage is the combination of hot coffee, iced drinks, cold milk foam, and Cold Brew in one machine.
Our Take
The Eletta Explore stands out for its wide range of hot and cold drinks, built-in grinder, and convenient automatic milk systems.
Quick Specs
| Machine Type | Automatic Espresso Machine |
|---|---|
| Grinder | Built-in conical burr grinder |
| Grind Settings | 13 |
| Capacity | 3.8 pounds |
| Drink Options | 50+ hot and cold one-touch recipes |
| Milk System | LatteCrema Hot & Cool Systems |
| Display | 3.5-inch TFT full-touch display |
Pros
- 50+ hot and cold drink recipes
- 13 adjustable grind settings
- Hot and cold milk frothing systems
- Cold Brew in under 3 minutes
- Customizable recipes and user profiles
Cons
- Larger footprint than many compact models
- Premium price
- Many features may take time to learn
De’Longhi Eletta Explore Key Features
The Eletta Explore is built around convenience. You select a recipe, adjust the drink if needed, and let the machine handle grinding, brewing, and milk preparation.
Key specifications:
| Feature | De’Longhi Eletta Explore |
|---|---|
| Grinder | Built-in conical burr grinder |
| Grinder settings | 13 |
| Water tank | 1.8 L |
| Bean hopper | 300 g |
| Pump pressure | 19 bar |
| Display | 3.5-inch color TFT touchscreen |
| Hot milk system | LatteCrema Hot |
| Cold milk system | LatteCrema Cool |
| User profiles | Up to 4 |
The machine also supports pre-ground coffee, adjustable drink sizes and strength, automatic rinsing, a water filter, and a To-Go function.
What Drinks Can the De’Longhi Eletta Explore Make?
The De’Longhi Eletta Explore can prepare 50+ hot and cold coffee drinks, making it more versatile than a typical automatic espresso machine. Along with espresso and classic milk drinks, it can also make iced coffee and Cold Brew.
What Makes the Eletta Explore Different?
The biggest advantage is that you don’t need a separate machine for cold coffee. The Eletta Explore can grind the beans, brew the coffee, and prepare hot or cold milk foam automatically.
Size, Water Tank & Bean Hopper Capacity
The machine measures approximately 26 cm wide × 45 cm deep × 38.5 cm high and weighs around 11.3 kg. In US measurements, that is about 10.25 × 17.5 × 15.13 inches.
The 1.8-liter water tank is enough for regular household use, although frequent milk drinks and rinsing will increase water consumption.
The bean hopper holds approximately 300 g of coffee beans. That is a generous capacity for a home automatic machine and means you do not need to refill it after every few drinks.
Built-In Grinder: Settings & Coffee Grinding Quality
The De’Longhi Eletta Explore has a built-in conical burr grinder with 13 grind settings. You can adjust the grind from finer to coarser depending on the coffee beans and the flavor you want.
Grinder Features:
- 13 grind settings for different coffee beans
- Conical burr grinder for consistent grinding
- Bean Adapt Technology to adjust brewing parameters
- Works with whole coffee beans
- Adjustable coffee strength
The Bean Adapt Technology works with the Coffee Link app to help match the brewing settings to your chosen beans. This can make a noticeable difference when switching between different roasts.
How Does the De’Longhi Eletta Explore Milk System Work?
The De’Longhi Eletta Explore uses two LatteCrema systems: LatteCrema Hot for warm milk foam and LatteCrema Cool for cold milk foam. This allows the machine to automatically prepare both classic hot milk drinks and iced coffee beverages with creamy foam.
LatteCrema Hot
The hot system automatically creates milk foam for drinks such as:
- Cappuccino
- Flat White
- Latte
- Latte Macchiato
- Caffelatte
- Cortado
The foam is produced automatically, so you do not need to steam the milk manually.
LatteCrema Cool
The second system is designed specifically for cold milk foam. It is used for iced drinks such as cold cappuccino, iced latte and other cold milk recipes.
The cold foam is useful because it gives the Eletta Explore something that many automatic coffee machines cannot provide: cold milk drinks without manually frothing milk.
De’Longhi Eletta Explore: Taste & Coffee Quality
The Eletta Explore focuses on consistent flavor and easy preparation rather than manual espresso control. It performs well across espresso, milk drinks, iced coffee, and Cold Brew.
What Can You Expect?
- Espresso: Rich and aromatic with a good crema when properly adjusted
- Milk drinks: Smooth and creamy foam from the LatteCrema system
- Iced coffee: Refreshing drinks with customizable strength
- Cold Brew: Smooth, less bitter, and ready much faster than traditional steeping
Fresh coffee beans still make a noticeable difference, especially with espresso. The grinder and brewing settings can also be adjusted to suit different beans.
Is the Eletta Explore Easy to Use and Clean?
The 3.5-inch color TFT touchscreen gives you access to the drink menu, settings and customization options. The machine can also connect to the Coffee Link app, where additional recipes and Bean Adapt settings are available.
Daily maintenance is mostly automated. The machine performs rinsing cycles, while the user still needs to empty the grounds container, clean the drip tray, refill water and periodically descale the machine.
What requires regular attention?
- Emptying the coffee grounds container
- Refilling the water tank
- Cleaning the drip tray
- Rinsing the milk system
- Cleaning the milk carafes
- Replacing the water filter when required
- Descaling the machine when prompted
The maintenance is not difficult, but the Eletta Explore is not completely maintenance-free. Like other fully automatic machines, it needs regular cleaning to keep the coffee and milk systems working properly.
De’Longhi Eletta Explore Pros and Cons
The De’Longhi Eletta Explore combines a wide range of hot and cold coffee options with automatic grinding and milk preparation. Its versatility is impressive, but the machine also has a few drawbacks worth considering.
Pros
- Makes both hot and cold coffee drinks
- Built-in conical burr grinder
- 13 grind settings
- Cold Brew preparation in minutes
- LatteCrema Hot and LatteCrema Cool systems
- Large 1.8 L water tank
- 300 g bean hopper
- 3.5-inch color touchscreen
- Bean Adapt Technology
- Coffee Link app connectivity
- Automatic cleaning functions
- Supports multiple user profiles
- To-Go function on supported models
Cons
- Relatively large and heavy
- Two milk carafes take up additional storage space
- Cold milk foam is not identical to hot milk foam
- The large number of recipes can initially feel overwhelming
Overall, the main strength of the Eletta Explore is versatility. It is particularly suited to households that enjoy different types of coffee, from hot espresso and cappuccino to iced drinks and Cold Brew.
De’Longhi Eletta Explore: Final Verdict
The De’Longhi Eletta Explore is a versatile automatic coffee machine built for people who want more than traditional espresso. It combines hot coffee, milk drinks, iced beverages, and Cold Brew with minimal manual work.
Why Choose the Eletta Explore?
- 50+ hot and cold drinks
- Built-in conical burr grinder
- 13 grind settings
- LatteCrema Hot and Cool milk systems
- Fast Cold Brew preparation
- 1.8 L water tank and 300 g bean hopper
- Touchscreen controls and app connectivity
- Automatic cleaning and convenient drink customization
The machine makes the most sense if you enjoy different coffee styles throughout the day and want them prepared at the touch of a button.